KDiscussion: Designing Qualitative Research

Research Theory, Design, and Methods Walden University

© 2016 Laureate Education, Inc. Page 1 of 3

Trustworthiness (Lincoln & Guba, 1985)

Trustworthiness is 1. The extent to which one can have confidence in the study’s findings 2. Parallel of reliability, validity, and objectivity in traditional “quantitative”

research Trustworthiness Criteria Credibility

Findings and interpretations are plausible to the “researched” (the participants) Do findings accurately reflect reality as seen by participants?

Transferability

Applicability of findings based on comparability of contexts Are conditions similar enough to make findings applicable?

Dependability

Account for factors of instability and change within the natural context Document naturally occurring phenomena (stability and change)

Confirmability

Capacity to authenticate the internal coherence of data, findings, interpretations, and recommendations Document “researcher as instrument” and potential sources of bias

Research Theory, Design, and Methods Walden University

© 2016 Laureate Education, Inc. Page 2 of 3

Insuring Trustworthiness Action Description Insures Prolonged engagement

Investing sufficient time to learn the culture, build trust with stakeholders, understand the scope of target phenomena, and test for misinformation/misinterpretation due to distortion by the researcher or informant

Credibility (internal validity)

Persistent observation

Continuing data collection process to permit identification and assessment of salient factors, and investigation in sufficient detail to separate relevant (typical) from irrelevant (atypical)

Credibility (internal validity)

Triangulation

Data collection and analysis interpretation based on multiple sources, methods, investigators, and theories

Credibility (internal validity)

Peer debriefing

Engage in analytic discussions with neutral peer (e.g., colleague not involved in the project)

Credibility (internal validity)

Member checks

Test veracity of the data, analytic categories (e.g., codes), interpretations, and conclusions with stakeholders to ensure accurate representation of emic perspectives

Credibility (internal validity)

Thick description

Describe procedures, context, and participants in sufficient detail to permit judgment by others of the similarity to potential application sites; specify minimum elements necessary to “recreate” findings

Transferability (external validity)

Audit trail

Records that include raw data; documentation of process and products of data reduction, analysis, and synthesis; methodological process notes; reflexive notes; and instrument development/piloting techniques

Dependability Confirmability (reliability and objectivity)

Negative case analysis

Investigate “disconfirming” instance or outlier; continue investigation until all known cases are accounted for so that data reflects range of variation (vs. normative portrayal)

Credibility (internal validity)

Research Theory, Design, and Methods Walden University

© 2016 Laureate Education, Inc. Page 3 of 3

Action Description Insures Reflexive journal

Researcher’s personal notes; documentation of researcher’s thinking throughout the research process

Credibility (internal validity) Transferability (external validity) Dependability Confirmability (reliability and objectivity)

Referential adequacy

Archiving of a portion of the raw data for subsequent analysis and interpretation, for verification of initial findings and conclusions

Credibility (internal validity)

References Lincoln, Y. S., & Guba, E. G. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. Thousand Oaks, CA:

Sage.